Jerry, who owns HippieTech (and makes his living rebuilding shocks), said my '99 Judy XC was a great $500 shock in its time that he'd recommend rebuilding, and the cost would run $75 to $125 depending on what he found wrong with it. He said he'd have my shock for 7 to 10 days. He's an avid mountain biker and his shop is decorated with most of his old bikes hanging from the high ceiling of the shop. He likes to talk about biking and his time at RockShock, and doesn't hurry off a customer. This builds some confidence when the customer is me. He had my shock a little over 2 weeks. I have only a few in town miles on it, but it rides great over the rough pavement and pot holes, and the bike rides like it is new. I think the shock felt like this years ago, but it was slow deterioration!

Anyway, here's what Jerry had to say: My original oil had broken down, which he, of course, replaced; one spring had "shrunk" and was replaced; the teflon on the brushings was worn out and ready to ruin the shock with metal to metal friction; the seals were shot and replaced (which is what caused me to bring it in). He replaced some small parts with more current parts as those parts are cheap once he has the thing apart. He pulled off the old frayed decals, and put new ones on. He added a dampening switch which I control and set my fork up for my weight. My bill with tax was $100 even. He recommends changing the oil every two years, and not later than every 3 years.

Not an exciting blog, but if you have a good old shock you haven't maintained, and don't want to replace it for $500, consider having it rebuilt. Your local bike shop may have a good trade out they'd sell for much less giving you another option. I'm not making any recommendations- except don't fix an old $100 shock; I'm just letting you in on my learning experience, and letting some of you know your shocks are aging, and oil breaks down over time!